Gavin Newsom Fires Back at 'Brain-Dead Moron' Donald Trump as Feud Explodes

The feud between California Gov. Gavin Newsom and President Donald Trump got heated on Wednesday, March 11, when the 58-year-old 2028 presidential hopeful called Trump a "brain-dead moron" in a post on X.

This was a direct response to Trump's public mockery of Newsom’s struggle with dyslexia.

"I spoke about my dyslexia. I know that's hard for a brain-dead moron who bombs children and protects pedophiles to understand,” Newsom said in response to his candid admissions in his new memoir, Young Man In A Hurry.

Newsom's "bombs children" remark referred to a preliminary Pentagon report regarding an unintentional U.S. strike on a girls' school in Iran on February 28.

Trump launched a series of sharp verbal attacks against Newsom on Wednesday, during a campaign rally in Hebron, Ky., and on Truth Social.

Trump referenced Newsom’s recent public discussion about his lifelong struggle with dyslexia, characterizing it as an admission of having "mental problems" and a "mental lack of ability."

He stated, "I don't want the President of the United States to have a cognitive deficiency," alleging that Newsom's inability to read a speech from a teleprompter made him unfit for office.

Newsom responded, "Too late," implying Trump himself is suffering from one.

When an audience member fainted during the event, Trump paused his speech and later suggested the topic of "Gavin Newscum" (a trademark insult he used) was a "subject" that made the woman feel sick.

Trump asserted that by being candid about his learning challenges, Newsom had committed a grave error and "took himself out of even being considered" for a future presidential run.

Before the rally, Trump posted on Truth Social that an interview Newsom gave about his lifelong dyslexia and low SAT scores was "politically suicidal.”

“In one fell swoop, he took himself out of even being considered as the Presidential Nominee of the Crazy (as proven at the State of the Union Address) Democrats,” Trump wrote.

The president continued: “He said, in a speech, he was dumb, had low Boards, can’t read, has dyslexia, and has a mental disorder — A Cognitive Mess! On top of that, Black People are angry because he is obviously a racist.”

This escalating rhetoric comes as Newsom is widely considered a potential Democratic contender for the 2028 presidential election, though he has not officially declared his candidacy.

Analysts view the Trump-Newsom beef as a win-win. For Trump, Newsom serves as a high-profile Democratic foil to rally his base against liberal policies. For Newsom, the conflict raises his national profile among the anti-Trump base and cements his status as a leading contender for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination.